The Little Girl from the Sea
by Rosethorn2
Summary: Taiki comes home to hear Yaten playing a new song. He tries to tell Yaten about his feelings, but Yaten being Yaten... AU, Shounen aiyaoi.


**Notes:** A slight spin-off from my main story _Life's Little Surprises_. Doesn't happen in any particular place in the story, but some references to that plotline may be mentioned. You _should_ still be able to read this without having read the other…

Extra note: Taiki's eyes seem to change color depending on which episode you're watching—or if you're going by the manga…So I'm going to pick one color I've seen, and stick with it.

**Warnings: **Shounen ai/yaoi/two boys making out/etc. Don't like it, don't read.

**Pairings:** Taiki Kou/Yaten Kou

**Disclaimer:** Don't own it.

_The Little Girl from the Sea  
_By Rosethorn

'Music?' had been Taiki's first thought as he walked through the door. He could hear strains of a song played on piano echoing throughout the apartment he and his two friends shared. The music stopped suddenly, followed by a loud curse. Taiki hid a grin. 'Ah, Yaten.' The blonde had been trying to compose a song that had been playing about in his head for the last few days, but from the looks of it, had been unsuccessful—at least, if the cursing that was still going on was any indication. The swearing finally ended and strains of music filled the air once more. Taiki walked from the entry-way to the main room and leaned against a wall, watching his friend play.

Yaten's face was a study of deep concentration, his eyes closed. The blonde paused suddenly, stiffening. He reached for his pencil and drew in a few more notes on a piece of paper in front of him.

"An A# (sharp) minor chord here…" he muttered, writing, then testing the chord with the rest of the song, wincing at the discord. Cursing, he erased the notation he had just written and wrote a new notation. Testing _that_ notation, he nodded to himself and worked on the next section, fine-tuning it.

Taiki smiled softly and crossed his arms. He loved watching the keyboardist work. There was so much fire and passion in the blonde, that it was a rarity to find him sitting still for long moments at a time. Granted, it wasn't as rare as finding Seiya still for long periods of time, but it definitely wasn't common. He watched the keyboardists delicate hands begin again on the piano, and let the music wash over him.

'Soothing,' he thought to himself, allowing his guard to go down slightly. He was disappointed when the music stopped abruptly.

"Dammit!" Yaten yelled. "It's missing _something_, but I'll be damned if I know what!"

"Try using the sustain pedal," Taiki suggested, deciding to make his presence known. Yaten gave a small scream, jumped, and banged his knees on the keyboard, causing his sheets of music to go flying. He whirled and glared at the brunette.

"Do you _have_ to sneak around and try to give me heart attacks?" he asked sourly. Holding up a hand to stave off whatever smart-ass remark Taiki may have, the blonde bent down to retrieve his music. After putting it in some semblance of order, he studied the music again to see if Taiki's suggestion, though unwanted, had any merit. Sighing and shrugging, he sat down at the piano again and played the song using the sustain pedal. The music took on a more dreamy quality. Taiki smiled as the keyboardist finished.

"Looks like I finally managed to get it right," he commented. Yaten made a face and nodded, albeit reluctantly.

"Yes, Taiki, for once you are right," he conceded. He glowered at the still-beaming bassist. "And wipe that smirk off your face. It's bad enough to watch Seiya walk around with it, I _don't_ need you acting smug!" Taiki's eyebrow rose in confusion.

"What does Seiya have to do with this?" Sighing again, the blonde motioned for Taiki to take a seat on a chair next to the piano. Yaten stared off into space for a moment.

"The whole thing with him and his new boy-toy," he said finally. Taiki's eyes widen.

"What about him?" Yaten glared at the brunette.

"I'm getting there!" he snapped. Taiki held up his hands in a defensive position. "He just keeps lording over me that he has someone now and I don't. It normally doesn't bother me, but…" the keyboardist trails off, staring at his hands. Taiki's eyes soften, and he puts a hand on the troubled man's shoulder.

"Seiya can be an insensitive bastard sometimes, can't he?" Yaten nodded sadly, before shaking his head swiftly.

"But it doesn't matter," he stated firmly. Pasting a calm expression onto his face, he moved to get up. Before he can totally rise from his seat however, Taiki enfolds him into a large hug from behind.

"You don't have to do this alone, you know," the taller man said into Yaten's shirt. The blonde stiffens and places his hands over Taiki's. He deftly removes himself from the other man's grip.

"Don't touch me," he spat, eyes blazing. He quickly turned and ran down the hall, leaving Taiki with a stunned expression. He quickly stood in preparation to follow, but his feet refused to move. He absently rubbed his chest by where his heart lay. It had scared him terribly to do that; to hug Yaten and basically tell the blonde what he felt. And now with watching the keyboardist look at him with so much malice before running away…that had hurt terribly. It was all he could do not to burst into tears. Instead, he sat back down on the chair Yaten had just vacated, staring longingly at the hallway the blonde had run down.

oOOo()oOOo

Yaten sobbed quietly into his pillow. He couldn't stand it any longer. It was damn hard to watch Taiki be that kind to him one minute, then cold as ice the next. The tall brunette had been his friend for years, but Yaten had always felt that the friendship had been slightly one-sided. Taiki was normally as cold as ice around him, and seemed only to be able to kid around with Seiya.

'Seiya has that effect on everyone it seems,' Yaten reflected with a bit of bitterness. He was capable of admitting that he was somewhat jealous of the raven-haired singer's ability to get along with almost everyone, though there were always exceptions. Tenou Haruka for example. The woman could not _stand_ Seiya, and no amount of flattery from the singer, nor any amount of sharp-edged nudges from Haruka's lover, Kaiou Michiru, could change that. It was rather amusing to watch actually.

'But beyond her and a few others…' Yaten thought to himself, slight good cheer quickly vanishing. He sat up and hugged his knees to his chest, resting his chin on his now-bent knees. He heard a soft knock on his door.

"What do you want?" he asked tiredly, not bothering to move. A sigh came from the other end.

"It's Seiya." The singer's voice sounded distinctly muffled through the door. Yaten glared at it, wishing that the door would vanish and that Seiya would roast from his rather acidic look.

"I ask again: what the hell do you want?" the blonde said coldly. "I don't have the energy nor the patience for your games right now, Seiya." Another sigh could be heard through the door.

"No games, Yaten. Just open the door, please?" the singer asked wearily. Yaten gave a sigh of his own before getting up and opening the door.

"This had better be good." Seiya tugged at his ponytail.

"Can I come in and close the door please?" he asked. The blonde stepped aside and gestured for him to enter. He then closed the door behind the singer.

"So now what?" Seiya whirled and Yaten was greeted by the sight of a pair of cold, blue eyes.

"For starters, you can explain to me why Taiki is down there on the verge of a breakdown." The blonde's eyes widen.

"Taiki?" he queried, puzzled. He sat down again on his bed. "Taiki's…?"

"Yes, Taiki's really upset!" Seiya growled. "And he was fine when I saw him this morning, _and_ he won't tell what's wrong, which means that's it's _something_ having to do with you! Dammit, Yaten, you damn well _know_ how he feels about you!" he exclaims in frustration. Yaten's eyes widen further before narrowing.

"Feels about me? Apart from the disdain and apathy? No, Seiya, I haven't a clue," he retorts frostily. Seiya's glare increased tenfold.

"Then you're a total idiot," the singer said venomously. "I obviously can't make any headway here, so when you decide to get your head out of your ass, I'll be downstairs trying to glue Taiki back together—if I can." He stalked out of the room, door slamming shut behind him. Yaten winced.

_You damn well_ know_ how he feels about you!_ Seiya's words kept on repeating themselves in his head. Yaten tried to drown out the voice by thinking of their upcoming concert (and mentally practicing the songs)—only to find that it became set to the piece of music he had just been working on—along with Taiki's baritone voice telling him that he didn't have to be alone. He sighed again, flopping backwards onto his bed.

'Why must everything about him be so _difficult_,' he moaned internally, rolling over and grabbing his pillow tightly, staving off tears once again. He stiffened at another knock on his door.

"Go to hell, Seiya!" he shouted, burying his face in his pillow, wishing that the earth would just swallow him whole.

"I'll be sure to relay the message," Taiki's hesitant baritone stated through the door. Yaten's head shot up. "Yaten…can I come in…just for a minute?" The blonde swallowed audibly before nodding—before remembering that the door was shut, so Taiki would not _see_ the nod.

"Yes, c-come in," he replied softly. The door swung open and the lanky brunette walked in.

"I'm sorry I angered you earlier," he said softly, refusing to meet Yaten's eyes. "I know how sensitive the subject of Seiya can make you sometimes…and I disregarded it. For that, I truly am sorry." Yaten ran a hand through his bangs at the apology.

"Look," he began nervously. "Y-you don't have to go and apologize. I mean, I was out of line for…well…" he trailed off, yanking his pony-tail in vexation. Taiki looked up at him, a brown eyebrow raised. Yaten blushed and looked at the floor, absently counting how many pieces of paper had been scattered since his last tally. His olive green eyes finally rise up to meet Taiki's. The brunette's eyes had shifted from a pale lavender to a deep lilac. Yaten swallowed at the intensity of the gaze.

Taiki found himself drowning in a sea of green. He could sense the blonde's discomfort at the stare-down, but he was unable to look away, though he tried. His heart was doing weird beats in a rhythm all its own, while his hands felt too hot, then too cold. He, too, swallowed nervously, trying in vain to either _say_ something or just look _away_.

'Some intelligence,' he managed to berate himself. 'Can't come up with anything other than "um"…though _that_ beats some of the other things I'd _like_ to say…' But somehow he doubted "Yaten! Take me, I'm yours!!" would fly over very well with the blonde. If the keyboardist had shied away from a mere hug and comforting words, what would he do with an all out declaration of love? At that point in time, Taiki didn't want to find out—he had a feeling it wouldn't be pretty. He finally managed to tear his gaze away, and noticed that Yaten was still pulling at his pony-tail.

"You keep that up and you'll be bald soon," he heard himself say. As though snapped out of a daze, Yaten's hand abruptly dropped, his stare once again lowering to the floor. The brunette sighed. "I…didn't mean to make you so uncomfortable around me, Yaten," he said finally. Yaten nodded.

"I know. I'm just weird, I guess," he replied softly. Taiki gave a lopsided grin.

"That's true," he agreed. The keyboardist looked up briefly enough to fix him with a half-hearted glare before staring at something on the wall behind him. Taiki looked over his shoulder briefly to make sure that there wasn't some axe-murderer behind him—or worse, their manager. He turned back around and saw the small amount of amusement on his friend's face.

"Don't worry, Taiki," Yaten drawled, though shakily. "No rabid fangirls have run into the room. I'd be long gone if that were the case." Taiki gave a small, hesitant laugh. Yaten sighed.

"Oh hell. Look, can we just forget what happened out there and move on?" he asked finally. Taiki, though his heart felt like it was shattering again, nodded and offered a small smile.

'I'll take friendship over nothing,' he thought to himself sadly. He was rewarded by a smile from Yaten; one that made his heart both hurt more and less.

"Ne, let's go tell Seiya, so that he can put away the roasting pan for my behind," the keyboardist drawled. Taiki's smile still held in place as the blonde walked past him and down the hall. Following, he paused by Yaten's keyboard, noting the music still on the keyboard. The melody played through his head once again, and he searched for a pencil to write "use the sustain pedal" on the top of the first page.

"Taiki!! What are you doing?!" Yaten exclaimed as he entered the living room again, Seiya in tow. Taiki jumped slightly and gave the irate blonde a sheepish look.

"Just making sure you remember to use the sustain pedal." Giving his friend an annoyed look, Yaten walked over and took the music out of Taiki's hands. Setting it out in front of him, he sat at the keyboard and began to play again.

"That's one of your better ones," Seiya commented as the song finished. Yaten flushed lightly and thanked him. Seiya frowned for a moment. "Have you thought of a title yet?"

"No, not yet," the keyboardist replied. Seiya's frown deepened and his face bore a look of intense concentration.

"Ne, Taiki? Remember those "fairy tales" we had to study for a project in our English class?" he asked suddenly. The brunette paused and nodded.

"Yes, what about them?"

"Well…I remember one about a girl from the sea…It was sad, and this song moves like the tides and sounds sad too, so I thought of it…But I can't remember what it's called!" Taiki smiled sadly.

"_The Little Mermaid_ is the one you're thinking of," he replied. Seiya's eyebrow raised.

"While I don't mind that name for a story, it's rather lackluster for a song, don't you think?" Yaten snorted.

"'Lackluster'? Have you been hitting the thesaurus again, Seiya?" he drawled. Seiya shot him an irritated look.

"Now listen, princess—"

"Princess! I'll princess you, you…you…" Yaten sputtered indignantly. As the two squared off against each other, Taiki used his pencil to write a title on the top of the fist page, right about his notation about the pedal: "La Petite Fille de la Mer". Yaten paused, seeing Taiki set the music back down again.

"What did you do to it _now_?" he asked exasperatedly, before going over and checking the sheets. "'The Little Girl from the Sea'?" he asked, looking up at the bassist. Taiki shrugged.

"I figured it made the song sound exotic. Besides, it still has _The Little Mermaid_ in there. Just…better hidden," Taiki explained. Yaten grinned.

"Makes sense to me!" They both turn and look at Seiya in perfect sync. The singer's eyes widen.

"You two are spooky when you do that!" he exclaimed, holding up his fingers in a cross-shape, causing all three to laugh. "Seriously though," he said, wiping a tear from his eye. "I like the name, and it seems to fit the song…Hey, Yaten? Ever thought about orchestrating this?" The man in question made a face.

"I hate orchestrating music! You know that it's not my forte," he stated flatly. Seiya held up his hands in a peace gesture. He turned towards Taiki, who was already backing away.

"Oh no you don't, Taiki!" he exclaimed, grabbing the brunette's arm. "I want you to orchestrate this!" Taiki sighed and nodded in reluctance, though inwardly pleased at the chance to orchestrate something Yaten had written.

'Fitting,' he thought to himself with no small amount of irony. 'The mermaid gives up her life for her prince's happiness. I'm giving up my happiness for my love's peace. Life has a strange sense of humor…' Shaking his head softly, Taiki picked up the music and brought it back to his room. He was interrupted a few moments later by a knock on his door.

"Yes?" His door opened and Yaten's head popped in.

"Ne, Taiki?" the blonde asked hesitantly. Taiki looked up, his gaze unconsciously softening.

"Was there something you needed, Yaten?" he asked before looking down at the sheets again.

"I just wanted to say…um…Can I come in?" Yaten stuttered finally. Taiki looked up again with a raised eyebrow, but motioned for his friend to come in. Yaten closed the door behind him, causing Taiki's other eyebrow to fly up. He noticed that the keyboardist was fidgeting slightly.

"I…thank you!" Yaten burst out finally.

"For…?" Taiki asked, puzzled. Yaten flushed, and stared at the floor.

"For earlier," he said softly. He walked over to where the bassist was sitting. "For letting me know that I wasn't totally alone…" he bent over and kissed Taiki chastely on the lips before turning bright red and dashing out of the room. Taiki's eyes had widened to the largest possible extent, and he brought a hand up to touch his lips. A goofy grin spread across his face.

'Maybe the mermaid'll get her prince after all…' he thought to himself gleefully.

oOOo()oOOo

That's all, folks! Oh, and _La Petite Fille de la Mer_ does not belong to me. It was composed by an artist called Vangelis. If you ever get a chance to hear the song, it's absolutely _beautiful_! Well…hope y'all enjoyed it!

Cheers!

Rosethorn


End file.
